Procrastination and such
Posted by rwday on May 16, 2008
I’ve been poking Horomancy again. After going through my WiPs, thinking about what I wanted to write, it was the one that stuck in my head the most, so I’m going to see if it takes this time. First step is to stop procrastinating and just write something. I did some notes and planning yesterday at work - that’s a start, at least
I read an interesting blog post on Slate about the difference between writer’s block and procrastination. The post focuses on Truman Capote and Ralph Ellison, wondering if they were blocked or just big time procrastinators. No question which I am - I’ll do a blog post of my own on the subject, someday. When I get around to it.
No word from Iris yet. I hauled out my contract - royalties are supposed to be paid within 30 days of the close of the quarter, so they’re definitely in breach. Before I go the legal route, I’ll send a registered snail mail letter - Tina tried that before and got no response, but I feel like I have to exhaust every reasonable means before I take steps that might turn things ugly. I hate this.
May 18, 2008 at 10:02 am
Procrastinators? Us? Surely not.
Must resist going to read that article…. *fails*
Good that you are pushing on with the writing.
What does the contract say about remedies for breach? Termination? It should have something about termination…
May 19, 2008 at 10:21 am
I’d hate to think she’d file for bankruptcy without us being able to attest the proceedure in order to procure some compensation. If she’s going bankrupt–I think she can and likely will, liquidate our rights to our books as an asset; and that would stink. If she is filing, I want to file status as creditor; I’ll take whatever copies she has of my title left as compensation. :/
May 19, 2008 at 10:21 am
Sorry - typo: liquidate HER rights to our books as an asset
May 19, 2008 at 9:50 pm
Erastes - pushing may be too strong a word. Gently shoving is more like it.
Just checked the contract again. It says that if the publisher suspends business indefinitely or files bankruptcy, the agreement terminates and rights revert to me. If she sells assets to another publisher, the new publisher is bound to my original contract terms, or if the new publisher doesn’t plan to publish my book, rights revert again.
The trouble is, my asserting my rights is dependent on her actually communicating with me. If she never tells me that she’s going out of business or filing bankruptcy, I’m just hanging in limbo. *sighs*
May 19, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Tina - check your contract. I hadn’t read the “Insolvency or Sale of Publisher” clauses carefully till now - if she files bankruptcy, my rights revert to me. I expect you’ve got the same thing. Of course, as I said to Erastes, she’s not exactly been forthcoming with information about her plans, so who knows if she’s filing bankruptcy, selling the press or just sticking her head in the sand till we all go away.